Summary: When Cal finally gets a chance with Kate, the girl he's loved since grade school, their easy friendship quickly blossoms into a meaningful romance. Spirited and independent, Kate keeps a guarded heart due to a painful past, and Cal wants nothing more than to gain her trust. But World War II soon cuts their time far too short, and Cal prepares to part from her - possibly for good. After he's gone, what Kate does next changes everything.

In the suffocating jungles of the Philippines Cal encounters the chilling life of a soldier and deadly battles of war. With Kate's memory willing him on, Cal must put his trust in God to survive if he hopes to ever return to her.

My Review: This book totally surprised me. The fact that is was inspired by a true story made it that much more touching. Cal's story is interesting alone, his mission work, his family farm life, his fight to survive during World War II then you add the romantic aspect with his interest in Kate. Their story was amazing. It wasn't typical. Of course, you know they have to end up together from the first introduction but their journey wasn't easy.

I was intrigued by all the detail of Cal's time in the Philippines and serving in the war. Lindsay did a great job transporting the reader to that time and the emotions a soldier feels during war. The comradery between him and the other soldiers, reading the letters that him and Kate write back and forth make you feel like you are really there with Cal. However, I love the fact that Kate was always on his mind. From the beginning to the end, even when they weren't together.

This book had the feel of a Nicholas Sparks novel. All the feels. It is clean so any age could enjoy this book. Overall, it is a great coming of age story dealing with young romance, strength in faith, and overcoming hardships.

About the Author

LINDSAY FERGUSON has been immersing herself in stories since her childhood days of sneaking a flashlight into her room and staying up reading The Babysitters Club series way past her bedtime, writing spinoffs of The Twelve Dancing Princesses, and imagining herself in fascinating, far-off places. She still dreams of traveling the world one day, and finds getting lost in a good book almost as absorbing as penning her own stories and experiencing them unfold. A Communication graduate from the University of Utah, she worked as a PR and marketing writer for a computer software company for several years before resigning to focus on raising her family. She has also contributed lifestyle articles to various media outlets. When she felt the itch to attempt novel writing a fascination with history created a natural inclination toward historical fiction, with a romantic flare, of course. She lives in a suburb of Salt Lake City with her husband and four children. By the Stars is her first novel.